Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made?

28 Oct Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made?

The ever-elusive question that boggles the minds of many aspiring entrepreneurs: Are entrepreneurs born or made?

Is it necessary to be born in the perfect family with the best set of entrepreneur genes? Or, does it take time, skill enhancement, proper education, mindset, and experience? Sure, it would be a relief to learn that, like most things, entrepreneurship merely requires mastery through experience and exposure in the industry. Unfortunately, this might not be the case.

According to some studies and research, there exists an entrepreneur gene, which means one is born an entrepreneur. They say that some people are born as alphas when it comes to the business world while others are merely pawns. This is the fate dictated by the entrepreneur gene, and it is even believed that the gene can be bred.

Now to take the matter a bit more over the top, Scott Shane, author of “Born Entrepreneurs, Born Leaders”, mentions that the gene doesn’t only determine whether the lucky bearer is to be an entrepreneur but even the amount of money he or she will make in the process. They’re the experts, though, so what else are we supposed to think?

We have this thought in our heads, and it’s time to look at the possible outcomes or how this is supposed to change society and the way we think. Everyone is made to believe that anything is possible through hard work and experience. But now that studies show that entrepreneurship success is influenced by a particular gene then what would be the sense of business schools and colleges?

Are individuals born with the “E Gene” required to study the specifics with regard to business and entrepreneurship, or does everything come naturally? Business school may exist but are they required to check the DNA of the student before being accepted? It sounds like a dystopian future, right?

So, a few eccentric old folks claiming to be experts in the entrepreneurship field were asked about the claim that people are born entrepreneurs due to a specific gene. Senior professor of entrepreneurship at Babson College, Julian Lange believes that, with proper guidance and the right education, all the needed skills and instincts required for an ideal entrepreneur rub off on students who are not exactly entrepreneur pedigree.

The 2008 book Born, Not Made: The Entrepreneurial Personality claims that some people are born that way, wired to do business or become successful entrepreneurs and are always a few steps ahead of everyone in the business industry.

There is a particular study from Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Kathryn Shaw claims that the influence in the success of a business is related to how much experience an entrepreneur has had. As obvious claims would state, the person with more business experience in the past is more likely to achieve peak entrepreneurial achievement!

Now, to be more specific on how these studies claim that the gene affects one’s likelihood to be an entrepreneur, here are a few points or triggers that the lucky gene bearer has.

The probability of starting a business, or basically the odds of the person to be an entrepreneur. This claims that once you are born with the gene, you’ll most likely start a business than become an Astronaut.

Easily identifies opportunities, or rather, the lucky individuals have a keen sense or “business senses” of sorts. Their business senses start tingling the moment an opportunity arises.

Likelihood of self-employment, well this is a no-brainer. Of course, being an entrepreneur means being your own boss!

Social Butterfly the born entrepreneur can easily interact with people of interests with little to no effort thus creating expanded connections that may benefit his or her business.

Sure, we now know all these points and supposed facts about being born as an entrepreneur but a little fun fact for you. The particular study and research that we’ve continuously mentioned were made from a general point of view. Meaning, sure people were said to be born with the entrepreneur gene and these folks are HIGHLY to become entrepreneurs, but whether they succeed in doing so may still depend on several external factors. This is good news for those who have lost hope!

One can be born untalented by default but with enough study and experience you can be a successful entrepreneur, and for those born with the gene, sure you may have it flowing through your veins but doesn’t mean you’ll be successful.

Here now lies the answer to our question. Are people born entrepreneurs? Well, yeah, sure, according to the so-called “experts”. You are born with the likelihood to be your own boss and pursue your own business. Through this answered question, a new question is bor: are “successful” entrepreneurs born? Well, it doesn’t seem so!

In the end, one will still have to strive to achieve glory while for some they may have to put in a little effort than others. What point is a blade if you do not sharpen it? What point are your fists if you do not hone it? With this said, the success of your business does not lie in what genes you are born with but on how you work on your business and how your role as a leader influences everyone in the system you have established.

You may not be born an entrepreneur, but if you feel it and badly want it, then no one can stop you!